The Hopefulness This Season Brings
by lizook
Summary: This had always been a hard time of year for her, but he'd begun to make it easier.


**A/N:** Blame the fact that I recently heard a random Christmas song while transferring my music to an external drive or that it snowed in PA yesterday. Or maybe just on the fact that I love the holidays. Set in the future; Booth and Brennan are in an established relationship.

**Spoilers**: Reference to 3x09 _The Santa in the Slush_

**Disclaimer: **Title taken from one of my favorite holiday songs, Amy Grant's _A Christmas to Remember_. Also, I don't own them. I wouldn't argue with a gift wrapped Booth though.

It was the first Christmas since they'd become...well, more them. She didn't know how to describe it otherwise. Sure, there'd been a shift in their relationship, but that was it. A shift. They still talked, laughed, argued. Only now, arguments often - not always - ended in a searing kiss.

She slid her mother's earrings on and began debating what shoes to wear. Who knew choosing the proper attire would be so hard? She sighed. This had always been a hard time of the year for her, but he'd begun to make it easier. Even before they were...what they were now. She still couldn't name it. She didn't want to. All the normal labels seemed to be too little for this. It was the small things like helping with the Careful Lionel case when he didn't have to, bringing her that tree, kissing her back under the mistletoe. She shuddered. Despite what she'd claimed at the time, that was no brotherly kiss. It had only heightened what she'd been trying to ignore for so long. The small gestures that had seeped into her life, making it a little less logical and a bit more, well, magical.

She heard him knock and threw on the shoes closest to her. Grabbing her coat and overnight bag, she made her way to the door, opening it just as he moved to knock again. She grinned. He was lit like a kid waiting for Santa and, when he saw her, he smiled as though Christmas had come early - if only by a few hours.

"Where's Parker?" She turned her key in the lock and let him lead her down the hall, hand resting in its usual place on her back.

"In the car. He's a little wound up; this is his first Midnight Mass." She nodded. She was glad one of them was excited; she was a bundle of nerves. Church made her that way. Kids made her that way. But Booth had invited her and she knew how much that meant. Besides, Parker really was a good kid and they got along surprisingly well. Then again, he was a Booth. It was as if they were predisposed to liking her.

"Dr. Bones!" Parker was leaning out the back window of the Tahoe, his breath drifting through the cold December air. "I get to stay up extra late tonight!"

She smiled at him and climbed into the car. "Does that mean you're going to sleep in tomorrow?"

"No way!"

"Good try, Bones." Booth said, laughing. "Come on, bub, head in the car. We don't want to be late." The corners of her mouth turned up once more as she heard the back window roll up and they began speeding through the city, holiday decorations melding into blurs of blue, green, and white as they passed.

BBBBBBBBBBBB

"So, what'd you think?" Booth leaned against the windowsill and took a deep breath, enjoying the silence. After Mass, Parker had raced to the apartment chattering about Santa, Rudolph, and that, yes, they should leave out carrots for all the reindeer. Booth had somehow bullied him into his PJs and put him to bed, where he was finally slumbering peacefully.

"It was fascinating." Brennan moved closer to him, her hand finding his. "I'm glad I went."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"I'm glad you went, too." He smiled down at her, the moment stretching on until he cleared his throat. "I, uh, have something I wanted you to open tonight."

"Something you don't want Parker to see?" She took a moment to appraise him, eyes lingering over his broad shoulders, strong chest, slim waist. "I don't see any bows on you..."

"You'll just have to look a little harder." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Actually, my parents used to exchange one gift on Christmas Eve - something only they'd understand...I just..." He floundered. "Merry Christmas, Temperance."

She took the small package from his hand and began to peel away the silver paper. Slowly. He swore she was doing it just to torture him. Maybe she'd think it - the idea, the gift itself - was stupid, idiotic even. The tissue paper crinkled as she pulled the gift from the box, watching him more than she was looking at what she'd unearthed. After what seemed like several minutes, but what couldn't have been longer than a couple of seconds, she looked down and smiled. A water gun.

Laughing, she wrapped her arms around his waist and melted into him. They watched as outside big, fat snowflakes began floating to the ground. She sighed and he pulled her even closer. This was the best gift either could ask for.


End file.
